John Brown: His Fight for Freedom


John Hendrix - 2009
    A great deal of academic study has been published recently about John Brown. This is the first book for young readers to include these new attitudes and research. In the late 1850s, at a time when many men and women spoke out against slavery, few had the same impact as John Brown, the infamous white abolitionist who backed his beliefs with unstoppable action. His dedication to freeing the American slaves made him one of the most recognizable leaders in the liberation movement to end slavery. Told through engaging, thoughtful narration and bold, dynamic illustrations, John Brown: His Fight for Freedom is a fitting reminder that all men and women are created equal, and that some things are worth fighting for. The book includes an author’s note, a bibliography, and an index. F&P level: U

Just Being Audrey


Margaret Cardillo - 2011
    Her unique sense of fashion, her grace, and, most important, her spirit made her beloved by generations. But her life offscreen was even more luminous. As a little girl growing up in Nazi-occupied Europe, she learned early on that true kindness is the greatest measure of a person—and it was a lesson she embodied as she became one of the first actresses to use her celebrity to shine a light on the impoverished children of the world through her work with UNICEF.This is Audrey Hepburn as a little girl, an actress, an icon, an inspiration; this is Audrey just being Audrey.

The Watcher: Jane Goodall's Life with the Chimps


Jeanette Winter - 2011
    Follow Jane from her childhood in London watching a robin on her windowsill, to her years in the African forests of Gombe, Tanzania, invited by brilliant scientist Louis Leakey to observe chimps, to her worldwide crusade to save these primates who are now in danger of extinction, and their habitat. Young animal lovers and Winter's many fans will welcome this fascinating and moving portrait of an extraordinary person and the animals to whom she has dedicated her life.The Watcher was named a Best Book of the Year by the Boston Globe, Kirkus Reviews, Booklist, and the Bank Street College of Education.

Mama Miti: Wangari Maathai and the Trees of Kenya


Donna Jo Napoli - 2010
    Today, more than 30 million trees have been planted throughout Mama Miti’s native Kenya, and in 2004 she became the first African woman to win the Nobel Peace Prize. Wangari Muta Maathai has changed Kenya tree by tree—and with each page turned, children will realize their own ability to positively impact the future.

Walt Whitman: Words for America


Barbara Kerley - 2004
    By getting to know them through many intense and affecting experiences, he began to see a greater life purpose: His writing could give these men a voice, & in turn, achieve his greatest aspiration--to capture the true spirit of America. Dramatic, powerful, & deeply moving, this consummate portrait of Whitman will inspire readers to pick up their pens & open their hearts to humanity.

One Beetle Too Many: The Extraordinary Adventures of Charles Darwin


Kathryn Lasky - 2006
    And despite his father's efforts to turn young Darwin — a poor student — into a doctor or clergyman, the born naturalist jumped instead at the chance to sail around South America, observing and collecting flora and fauna all the way. In a clear, engaging narration, Kathryn Lasky takes readers along on Darwin's journey, from his discovery of seashells on mountaintops that revealed geological changes to his observations of variations in plants and animals, suggesting that all living things are evolving over time. Matthew Trueman's striking mixed-media illustrations include actual objects found in nature, enhancing this compelling look at the man behind the bold theory that would change the way we think about the world — and ourselves.

Miss Lady Bird's Wildflowers: How a First Lady Changed America


Kathi Appelt - 2005
    Joy Fisher Hein's colorful wildflowers burst from every page, inviting us to share in Lady Bird's love for natural beauty. From a lonely childhood in the Piney Woods of East Texas to an exciting life in the White House, Lady Bird Johnson loved wildflowers with all her heart. They were her companions in her youth, greeting her everywhere as she explored wild forests, bayous, and hills. Later, as First Lady, she sought to bring the beauty of wildflowers to America's cities and highways. She wanted to make sure every child could enjoy the splendor of wildflowers.Perfect for sharing in classrooms and at home for Women's History Month as well as for units on Texas, presidential family, and environmental history, this unique picture book biography is accessible and appealing.This nonfiction picture book is an excellent choice to share in the classroom and for homeschooling.

Pioneer Girl: The Story of Laura Ingalls Wilder


William Anderson - 1992
    Now Little House fans can learn more about "Half-pint" in this, the first picture book biography book of Laura Ingalls Wilder.With a simple, glowing text by noted historian and Little House scholar William Anderson, and glorious paintings by Dan Andreasen, Pioneer Girl is a very special portrait of a writer whose classic books and poineer adventures have made her one of the most popular literary figures in America.This picture-book biography of Laura Ingalls Wilder tells the remarkable story of the pioneer girl who would one day immortalize her adventures in the beloved Little House books. Written in simple, glowing text by noted Little House scholar William Anderson, and illustrated with glorious paintings by artist Dan Andreasen, this wonderful first biography captures the very essence of the little girl called ‘Half-pint,' whose classic books and pioneer adventures have made her one of the most popular literary figures in America.This picture-book biography of Laura Ingalls Wilder tells the remarkable story of the pioneer girl who would one day immortalize her adventures in the beloved Little House books. Written in simple, glowing text by noted Little House scholar William Anderson, and illustrated with glorious paintings by artist Dan Andreasen, this wonderful first biography captures the very essence of the little girl called ‘Half-pint,’ whose classic books and pioneer adventures have made her one of the most popular literary figures in America.

The Fantastic Undersea Life of Jacques Cousteau


Dan Yaccarino - 2009
    His popular TV series brought whales, otters, and dolphins right into people s living rooms. Now, in this exciting picturebook biography, Dan Yaccarino introduces young readers to the man behind the snorkel. From the first moment he got a glimpse of what lived under the ocean s waves, Cousteau was hooked. And so he set sail aboard the Calypso to see the sea. He and his team of scientists invented diving equipment and waterproof cameras. They made films and televisions shows and wrote books so they could share what they learned. The oceans were a vast unexplored world, and Cousteau became our guide. And when he saw that pollution was taking its toll on the seas, Cousteau became our guide in how to protect the oceans as well."

Stand Up and Sing!: Pete Seeger, Folk Music, and the Path to Justice


Susanna Reich - 2017
    Coming of age during the Great Depression, Pete saw poverty and adversity that would forever shape his worldview, but it wasn't until he received his first banjo that he found his way to change the world. It was plucking banjo strings and singing folk songs that showed Pete how music had the incredible power to bring people together.Using this gift throughout his life, Pete encouraged others to rally behind causes that mattered--fighting for Civil Rights, ending the Vietnam War, or cleaning up the Hudson River. For Pete, no challenge was too great, and what started out as a love for music turned into a lifetime of activism and change. His greatest talent--and greatest passion--would become an unforgettable part of American history.

Some Writer!: The Story of E. B. White


Melissa Sweet - 2016
    B. White’s Charlotte’s Web. In Some Writer!, the two-time Caldecott Honor winner Melissa Sweet mixes White’s personal letters, photos, and family ephemera with her own exquisite artwork to tell his story, from his birth in 1899 to his death in 1985. Budding young writers will be fascinated and inspired by the journalist, New Yorker contributor, and children’s book author who loved words his whole life. This authorized tribute is the first fully illustrated biography of E. B. White and includes an afterword by Martha White, E. B. White's granddaughter.

The Power Broker: Robert Moses and the Fall of New York


Robert A. Caro - 1974
    Moses built an empire and lived like an emperor. He personally conceived and completed public works costing 27 billion dollars--the greatest builder America (and probably the world) has ever known. Without ever having been elected to office, he dominated the men who were--even his most bitter enemy, Franklin D. Roosevelt, could not control him--until he finally encountered, in Nelson Rockefeller, the only man whose power (and ruthlessness in wielding it) equalled his own.

When Paul Met Artie: The Story of Simon & Garfunkel


G. Neri - 2018
    As teens, they practiced singing into a tape recorder, building harmonies that blended their now-famous voices until they sounded just right. They wrote songs together, pursued big-time music producers, and dreamed of becoming stars, never imagining how far their music would take them. Against a backdrop of street-corner doo-wop gangs, the electrifying beginnings of rock ’n’ roll, and the rise of the counterculture folk music scene, G. Neri and David Litchfield chronicle the path that led two young boys from Queens to teenage stardom and back to obscurity, before finding their own true voices and captivating the world with their talent. Back matter includes an afterword, a discography, a bibliography, and a fascinating list of song influences.

A Clearing in the Distance: Frederick Law Olmsted and America in the 19th Century


Witold Rybczynski - 1999
    But Olmsted's contemporaries knew a man of even more extraordinarily diverse talents. Born in 1822, he traveled to China on a merchant ship at the age of twenty-one. He cofounded The Nation magazine and was an early voice against slavery. He managed California's largest gold mine and, during the Civil War, served as the executive secretary to the United States Sanitary Commission, the precursor of the Red Cross.Rybczynski's passion for his subject and his understanding of Olmsted's immense complexity and accomplishments make his book a triumphant work. In A Clearing in the Distance, the story of a great nineteenth-century American becomes an intellectual adventure.

I Dissent: Ruth Bader Ginsburg Makes Her Mark


Debbie Levy - 2016
    This biographical picture book about the Notorious RBG, tells the justice’s story through the lens of her many famous dissents, or disagreements.